One team in Tassie still AFL's long-term aim

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One team is probably best and if we can get there at some stage following the expiration of those deals, so be it

AFL game development boss Simon Lethlean

THE AFL has reaffirmed its desire to establish one team in Tasmania in the wake of the recently completed Garlick report.

AFL game development manager Simon Lethlean and a contingent of League officials met with AFL Tasmania staff and Tasmania State League club representatives on Tuesday to discuss the process of appointing a new AFL Tasmania CEO following Scott Wade's resignation last week.

Lethlean told reporters the AFL remained of the view that having one team in Tasmania was preferable to the existing two-team model, in which Hawthorn plays four games a season in Launceston and North Melbourne plays three in Hobart.

"I think Gill [McLachlan] himself has talked about the one-team model being conceptually the best option for a state," Lethlean said.

"(But) conception and reality is different. We now have two AFL clubs here doing a great job, Hawthorn with a five-year term to come after the expiration of this year and North Melbourne currently in discussions with sponsors and government about extending their relationship.

"So I guess the short-term reality is a two-team model and that’s working fine.

"(But) conceptually, we think one team is probably best and if we can get there at some stage following the expiration of those deals, so be it."

Former Western Bulldogs CEO Simon Garlick recently completed a report for the League on the future direction of Tasmanian football, which is currently being considered by the AFL Commission.

Garlick noted in his report that Hawthorn and North Melbourne were together servicing Tasmania well, but recommended that a one-team model eventually be introduced.